That rumored two-year, $9 million deal for Rob Blake? No way. That pursuit of goalie Gustavsson? Well, yes

Normally, I don’t run every Internet rumor past my Sharks’ sources. I don’t want to waste my time or theirs.

But, hey, Monday was a rare off-season work day for me. And I already was scheduled to talk with a few folks even before the Todd Richards story broke. So I floated that BleacherReport posting about a two-year, $9 million deal for Rob Blake past them.

The consensus response: Absolute nonsense.

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Rob Blake is 39, but he made it clear right after the Sharks were eliminated in Anaheim that he wanted to come back for another go-round. And every indication is that the Sharks would like that, too, and are doing what they can to make it happen.

But do not expect it to be a multi-year deal. (Blake is over 35 and that means his 2010-11 salary would count against the cap even if he were injured and unable to play). And my educated guess is the payroll hit won’t be close to $4.5 million.

I did try reaching Blake and his agent today, but no luck there.

*****You also may have read reports that the Sharks have been among the teams pursuing free agent goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. Those are accurate, though my source says only that the team’s contact with Gustavsson’s agent falls into the general category of pursuing any and all ways to improve the roster, and would not characterize the likelihood of success.

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.

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great (and timely) follow-up as usual…thanks DP…appreciate your ‘staying on the job’ here…

FreeShark

Hope it is a one year deal closer to 3 mil. Nothing over that.

Shrksfan

Let’s be patient! One of the best attributes of Doug Wilson is he listens more than he talks. The Sharks need to answer questions of “mix”, grit, leadership, and “playing the best when it matters the most”.

Blake did not play the best in the playoffs, few players did. The whole team needs to step up and commit. Like the Lakers after being blown out by Boston by 39 points last year, every day was a dedicated effort to the championship this year.

Detroit one one flop save away from going into OT. Hockey is a sport where 115 games and the final few seconds are make or break it for both teams.

I want to see the fire, desire, commitment, and being there come playoff time. I want another President Trophy next year, home ice advantage that works, and an edge that says there is no stopping this group towards th SCF. Luck is always a factor, but you gotta make your own luck with preparation and dedication.

Go Sharks!

Enough S. Enough

Rob Blake is overhyped…he was total crap in the playoffs and for most of the 2nd half. Not to mention his time injured. This roster needs a MAJOR overhaul. Get rid of him.

StopBangingOnTheGlass

DP, thanks for squashing that rumor on the quick. I was concerned enough that it became dinner table discussion for us 🙂 I would have a lot of concern about the next season if that were one of DW’s first moves.
I might be ok with a one year deal for much, much less but that is about it. Otherwise, Blake can go away without a great deal of loss if any. Yes, he produced points offensively but if you really watched his play as a defenseman, you would see him consistently get beat and resort to a hook or hold to keep from getting outright burned. He’s tall but he is not quick or strong enough to handle the offense of today’s NHL. Great guy but time for the Sharks to move on if they want to get beyond the 2nd (or even 1st) round.

I’m excited for the changes to come in the next two weeks. Let’s hope they are in the right direction.

andrew

No. More. Old. Guys. Goodbye JR. Goodbye Claude. And Goodbye Blake.

Evilducks

Thanks DP. I’m happy with Blake being our #3 blue-liner but not at that price and not on a contract longer than a year at a time.

Thanks for quashing that for us, I think people are a little too bored around here and willing to believe even the most insubstantial of rumors related to the Sharks.

GP

EvilD, that’s timely and coincides with what I said to Josh. He he. In this blog, it seems, all rumors are true until proven false.

LOL!

Ivano

Thank goodness. Anything over $3M/year for Blake is overpaying.

GP

Guys! Speculating on a number for Blake is simply setting yourself up for disappointment.

I’m an independent in the work force, so I hope gets as much as he can get. But also, there are formulas that get employed to help determine what that number might be. IMO, that formula has been generally weighted towards experienced vets with Stanley Cups.

The only number I care to speculate on is less than 5M.

PK

Both Blake and Boyle had 4 points in the playoffs, so if you’re going to complain about Blake not producing, the same goes for Boyle and no one is going to make that claim.

He was however, -5 in the playoffs. But he was also +15 in the regular season (tied with Vlassic, his D partner and only 1 behind the Thornton/Marleau/Setoguchi line). Although, +/- stats can be very misleading and unreliable.

He also did take a lot of penalties, second only to Shelley I believe.

I love Blake, I hope he comes back, but he is getting old, and multi-year deal is out of the question. Who knows how long he’ll stick around. Plus, we simply can’t afford to keep him at 5 mil, but I’m sure he’ll settle for less.

He’s an asset to the team. I’m going to disagree on his poor defense skills, I saw him making great plays plenty of times this past year. They’re just not big plays, it’s more subtle. Watch his stick-handling and positioning. He was crucial to the PK.

Other than that, I’m all for getting Gustavsson. We need to either light a fire under Nabby or replace him.

Jeff

I think some people are being a little harsh on guys like JR and Blake. Blake put up 45 points and was a plus 15. I think he knows he was overpaid last year and will take 2-3 mil. JR will only make around a million and the line of him, Mitchell, and Cheech looked very good in the playoffs. Yes they are old but I don’t see how bringing them back is a bad idea.

CBA

What I saw was that his big slapshot was not as effective as it once was, many times he took shots during a powerplay and it was blocked and came immediately outside the zone. Sometimes it was over zealous and probably better to look for better shots.

Rob Blake needs the money since he overpaid for Craig Rivet’s house…

Frank

Who in the heck is Jonas Gustavsson? I’ve never heard of him. Must be a sad state of affairs if the Sharks are looking outside of their farm team for players if their looking for a goalie.

sk1

Frank: Gustavsson is “The Monster”. He’s good. I hope the Sharks land him. What will his team nickname be once Nabby is gone? Gusty? Sonny? Gustavsy?

Tano

sk1, the chant/nickname should be

HERE COMES JONNY!!!!!!!!

sk1

Tano… I like it. I like it a lot. We could even have a little Nicholson piped in for his intro. I really think SJ has a very good chance to get him. He will want to be on a winner and of the teams he’s interested in the Sharks are the closest to a Cup.

andrew

Goaltending is not our problem. Did anyone watch Detroit play in the playoffs? Relentless pursuit of the puck. I watched 90% of sharks games this past season. Too many guys standing around waiting for the other guy to make a play.

WineShark

BleacherReport once again scoops the world with nonsensical drivel. Well …. except the part about Blake signing ….. except he cant sign until there is cap space …… but if he COULD sign, then the BR would be right that he might sign. My guess is one year, $3M with incentives …. afrer July 1st.

ShucktheFarks

@ andrew

“Relentless pursuit of the puck.”

I hate to tell you, but teams that chase the puck around all day play hockey at a lower quality than what a 10-year old plays it at.

Here’s an excerpt from a great article I found online about just how bad the quality of NHL hockey is:

“In the corners, don’t fight for the puck. Set up your players where the puck is likely to come out. Fighting in the corners only reduces your energy level. You can’t score from the corners. Sure, there’s the lucky break, but that’s all they are. Don’t fool yourself that this was because of some clever play because it’s downright stupid. If the other team has the puck in the corner, that’s where you want it. They can’t score from there. But keep the pressure up while keeping the energy levels up. Don’t tire yourself out, but do try and cause enough frustration to the other team’s players that will drain their energy. When you get the puck, you’ll have the energy to mount an attack, but the other team will be exhausted.

I’m going to repeat this one. Don’t chase the puck. You are no longer mites. And you’re no longer cute. So please give it up. For the sake of the kids who are learning hockey. You’re setting a bad example. Mites now think they’re NHL calibre because frankly, there’s no difference. Toronto, I’m talking to you.”

Tano

FYI
Gustavsson Update
By Curtis | Jun 15, 2009Jonas Gustavsson was in Colorado today to meet with the Avalanche, he is making 4 stops to visit teams before he makes his decision on where he wants to sign.

His next stop is expected to be in San Jose then Dallas after followed by Toronto to end his trip.

Once he has finished meeting up with the teams he is expected to make his decision within a week.

andrew

Yeah Detroit only won the Stanley Cup last year and were a game away this year from winning it again. And what do they do better than anyone, according to the great Drew Remenda? PUCK PURSUIT.

“When you get the puck, you’ll have the energy to mount an attack, but the other team will be exhausted.”

WHEN you get the puck? So stand around and wait until the puck magically appears on the tape of your stick? Here’s how you wear the other team down. Puck control along the boards, using your body as a shield and cycling it to death. It is a FACT that when you are on offense, even if you are expending more energy, the team playing defense will tire out more quickly. Ask any athlete that.

SoCalSharksGirl

Hey DP,

What have you heard about the Heatley buzz? Any thoughts (or talk) on whether the Sharks will make a trade to get him or not?

Shrkfinatic

No, no, no on Heatly! He’s the LAST player the Sharks need, well besides Marian Hossa. Heatly’s a cancer on the team, too selfish.

shark attack

It`s time to wake up and build this team properly. First of all, get rid of these dinosaurs that you think will help( Roenick, Lemieux, Grier, Blake). Next spend Blakes $5million towards getting Boumeister. Get rid of Marleau, and get a real Captain, one who gives everything he`s got every game, which if you watched any playoff hockey, you`d see what it takes to win. Next find these $1millon a year diamonds in the rough to fill holes. It seems every other team can do it, why can`t we? Finally, hire a psychic to contact our deceased goalie coach to get him to get Nabby back on his game. Get with the program guys……..EAT, SLEEP, LIVE HOCKEY………….Wake up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for debunking that one, DP. I should have known better than to put much stock into a “story” coming from a site mocked as often as bleacherreport…

shark attack,

I agree that Lemieux and Grier (if Moen is re-signed or comparable can be found; Chad LaRose please!) should be shown the door, but Blake is the only d-man we can reasonably afford at his level of production. The $5mil you think will be freed by his departure has already been allocated to the raises given to Murray and Pickles. Bouwmeester isn’t even a pipe dream at this point, given his likely cash grab. I hope DW can convince Blake that the team will have a better shot if he takes something in the $2-3mil range so they can fix the lower lines.

It’s understandable that you want Marleau moved, but to where and for what return? The teams that are able to take on his salary and make a solid offer are locations that Patrick probably won’t lift his NTC for.

The “diamond in the rough” types you mention are incredibly hard to find, which is why most teams covet them but are unable to draft and develop them. It isn’t as simple as saying, “Go get one.” It takes great scouting and years of hard work until they actually produce.

Mentioning Strelow like that is in bad form, in my opinion. It seems like Nabby has had more trouble recovering from bad performances since Warren’s passing, but do you really think it was necessary to be so crass?

Johnny San Jose

A-Train — How dare you come in here speaking such common sense?

I’m still looking for the “Silly GM” button to push where you can GMs to do any deal that is wished for on this board and the Sharks can give away their lesser players for the best players in the league. And fill all of the roles that need to be filled.

I can offer two considerations:
Since he is a Swede and has been freezing his behind for all of his life living in that country, why consider Toronto where he is going to freeze his behind in a different language?
I say SJ has a better climate to offer.

Second consideration….don’t have one….

Johnny San Jose

Tano — We had Ragnarson as a legacy Swede. Maybe that’s the compelling event?

Re-sign Blake and put the “C” on his sweater. If Grier is healthy (and he wasn’t in the playoffs) put the “A” back on him. Let Patty be Patty, and skate & score without having to worry about being the captain.

oceanside

Dave Kearns #32: “Re-sign Blake and put the “C” on his sweater. If Grier is healthy (and he wasn’t in the playoffs) put the “A” back on him.”

First off, even if Blake were resigned, he’s the last person next to Jody Shelley who should wear the “C.” The most important duty of a Captain is to talk to the refs, to put the team’s best skate forward, as it were, to represent the team’s point of view to the zebras who are the Supreme Court Justices on the ice.

Do you want Rob Blake, a player who is in the top 20 of Dmen in the league for penalty minutes, a guy who is second only to our enforcer for total Sin Bin minutes for the Sharks to be our Ambassador to the Refs????

Secondly, regarding Grier – he seems like a very nice man, very articulate and humble in front of the mike BUT Grier’s knees are kaputz – he could hardly skate after coming back from his corrective surgery and he was a bad enough skater when he was younger – now he’s beyond bad. With Grier, it’s not a matter of health, it’s a matter of age – it’s time for Griersy to hang up the skates. I sincerely hope that Dougie doesn’t resign Grier for “Auld Lang Syne” -groan.